Niceto Alcalá-Zamora
- 1933
- Oil on canvas
- 210 x 150 cm
- Cat. P_243
- Comissioned from the artist in 1933
Eugenio Hermoso, a member of the San Fernando Fine Arts Academy, was a highly regarded painter within the regional genre, particularly in Extremadura. However, he was also very closely linked to the circles of power in Madrid. For example he was a friend of the sitter here, Niceto Alcalá-Zamora, who honoured him by attending the opening of Hermoso’s solo show in 1931, the year in which the Second Republic was proclaimed.
This portrait of the leader of the Provisional Government and President of the Second Republic stands, somewhat arrogantly, somewhere between a formal portrait and a familiar, intimate depiction. Alcalá-Zamora is standing in front of a desk. His slightly stretched out hand is reminiscent of the famous Portrait of Pablo de Valladolid by Diego Velázquez and of Francisco de Goya’s portrait of the Count of Cabarrús (a painting more closely linked to the Banco de España). Goya echoed Velázquez in using a slight gesture to give the sitter a degree of vitality and humanity. The president is known to have sat for Hermoso at his Calle Almagro studio in Madrid, so it can be assumed that the composition was thought up by the artist. In that regard, the work stands out particularly for the decision to place the figure in front of a heavily wooded landscape under a dramatic cloudy sky, another feature typical of Velázquez. This could refer to one of the most popular measures of the Republican government with respect to the city of Madrid: returning to the people the Casa de Campo parkland, which had been the private property of the monarchy.
Bundle 3818 of the Banco de España Archives contains documents on the commissioning and payment of this painting. Their value is mainly documentary, as they reflect the Bank’s interest in maintaining its gallery of portraits of heads of state after the abolition of the monarchy. However, no portrait of Manuel Azaña, who followed Alcalá-Zamora as President of the Republic, was produced, probably due to the military coup and the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War.
President of the Spanish Republic 1931 - 1936
After graduating in Law from Granada University and obtaining a PhD from the Central University in Madrid, Niceto Alcalá-Zamora y Torres began to work as an articled clerk in Díaz Cobeña’s law firm and in 1899 passed the public examinations required to secure a post as a Council of State Lawyer. In 1903, he became part of the liberal circle of the Count of Romanones, where he started his political career. He was elected to Parliament in 1905 for the La Carolina district, which would be ‘his constituency’ until 1923 and again from 1931. In Parliament he was known for his oratory skills and for his sound legal and administrative background.
When Canalejas died and the Liberal Party split, he joined the democratic faction in the form of Manuel García Prieto’s Democratic Liberal Party. He was Minister of Public Works in 1917 and 1918, and of War in 1922. His position regarding the coup d’état by Primo de Rivera led to a break with the monarchy following the extension of the Military Junta after the Alhumecas landing. A similar move was made by Miguel Maura, who founded the Republican Liberal Right in 1930. In August of that same year he took part in the San Sebastián Pact and was appointed Head of the Revolutionary Committee, which became the Provisional Government when the regime changed. After the approval of the Constitution, the Azaña Government appointed him President of the Republic on 18 December 1931. The 1933 elections, won by the Lerroux radicals and the CEDA, threw the regime into crisis. The Lerroux government had to deal with the crisis in Asturias and the proclamation of the Catalan State by Companys. In December 1934, another Lerroux-Gil Robles Government went into crisis. Alcalá-Zamora entrusted the government to Portela Valladares, who called an election in 1936. The Spanish Parliament deposed Alcalá Zamora in April.
When the Spanish Civil War broke out, he was on a trip to Norway. He settled in France (Paris and Pau) and when World War II started he decided to emigrate to Buenos Aires, which he reached after a long journey that included spending time in Mexico. He died in Buenos Aires in 1949 and his remains were brought back to Madrid in 1977.
Other works by Eugenio Hermoso Martínez